The social and cultural aspects of grassroots religious beliefs and practices are central to my research, which attempts to discover why religion matters in our culture. For example, much has been written about the impact that post-World War II baby boomers have had on American religion, however, it is the generation that has followed that interestsme -- young Americans who are now in their twenties and thirties. I find they are having a significant influence on the face of religion, but not much is known about them. What are their churchgoing habits and spiritual interests and needs? How does their faith affect their families, their communities and their politics? These questions are addressed in my recent book, After the Baby Boomers: How Twenty-and Thirty-Somethings are Shaping the Future of American Religion. Tensions between religious liberals and conservatives, how religious values influence decisions about work and money, the changing character of popular spirituality, what it is like to grow up religious, the role of spirituality in artistic creativity, and the challenges posed by increasing religious diversity -- these are just a few more of the kinds ofquestions I have explored in my books and articles. Finally, an enduring thread in my research concerns the cultural work we do to negotiate seemingly intractable and incompatible commitments, such as being individualistic and altruistic, public and private, religious and secular, generous and materialistic. Questions of civil society, especially its porous nature, and the unexamined narratives that tell us things are going well when they often are not, likewise, intrigue me.